


A Love Like Magic

by TwiAddictAnne



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-25
Updated: 2014-12-25
Packaged: 2018-03-03 12:19:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2850647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TwiAddictAnne/pseuds/TwiAddictAnne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A love that does not care that they are not supposed to be together ... a love that transcends all social boundaries. Can a love like that create the magic needed to survive the harshness of reality? All Human. Canon Couples. Rated for adult themes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Love Like Magic

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: No matter how much I wish I could say otherwise, I do not own the Twilight Saga.
> 
> A/N: I would like to thank the awesome Breath-of-Twilight for arranging this countdown. And to you, my dear readers … enjoy! :)

** A Love Like Magic **

 

 

 

** England, 1110 … 8 Years Old **

****

 

“Isabella?” The child hears the sound of her mother’s voice as she peeks from behind the big oak tree in the middle of the field. “Isabella? This child tests the last bit of my patience!” Her mother sighs in frustration before turning back toward the farmhouse.

 

Stifling a giggle, Isabella sneaks out of her hiding place. Once she is certain that her mother will not see her, she breaks into a run toward the hill that marks the opposite end of the field.

 

She stumbles a few times but manages to get up and crawl through the expanse of the hill. When she reaches the other side, a gasp leaves her.

 

There, before her, lies a great expanse of green land with wildflowers dotting here and there. Isabella lets out a childish giggle as she runs to the nearest bunch of wildflowers.

 

She reaches out with her hand to pluck the pretty flowers when a voice calls out, “Stop! Don't hurt them.”

 

The sudden sound, paired with the thick accent, makes her stop. She looks up from where she is kneeling by the flowerbed.

 

Her curious, chocolate brown eyes meet a pair of worried, grass green ones standing in front of her. She takes in the troubled look on the green-eyed boy’s face and asks, “But why?”

 

“You will hurt the flowers—my mama says so,” he replies knowledgably.

 

Her eyes widen. “Do flowers really hurt when I pluck them?”

 

He nods urgently. “Yes.” Then, he plops down beside her.

 

Isabella examines the boy beside her closely before asking the question that has been on her mind the moment she heard his voice. “Why do you talk funny?”

 

He looks offended by her remark and retorts back, “Why do _you_ talk funny?”

 

She gasps at his behavior. “I do _not_ talk funny!”

 

This time, he shrugs. “Then, neither do I.”

 

Isabella nods, her uncomplicated mind accepting that as a fact. She then decides to introduce herself to her new friend just like Momma taught her to and holds her hand out to the boy. “My name is Isabella Swan.”

 

He looks at her hand for a moment before taking it in his and smiles at her. “I am Edward Cullen.”

 

Isabella stays right there, talking to her new friend until Edward exclaims that he needs to get going if he wants to make it to the study table before his father gets home.

 

That reminds her of her mother searching for her, and she stands up as well, ready to leave this new land with a promise to come back once more just to meet with Edward.

 

****

****

** 11 Years Old **

 

“Edward?” A smile finds its way on Edward’s face as he hears Isabella call his name softly.

 

“What, Bella?”

 

His question makes her giggle. “Why do you keep calling me Bella? My name is Isabella, you know?”

 

He lifts his small shoulder in a dainty shrug and says, “You can be Isabella to everyone else, but to me, you are only Bella. Isabella is a very long name.”

 

Bella pokes her tongue out at him for teasing her about her name, but in her mind, she does not mind being only his Bella.

 

Edward pretends not to notice the fleeting smile on her lips and asks, “What were you going to say?”

 

“Oh, right!” Bella slaps her forehead for forgetting. “I told Rose about you.”

 

He starts to feel worried at the mention of her overprotective sister. “And?”

 

She frowns before saying, “I did not tell her everything. I only told her that I have a best friend who lives across the hill.”

 

“What did she say, Bella?” he enquires once more, already expecting it to be something akin to what his Uncle Jacob said to him a few weeks prior.

 

In a small voice, Bella replies, “She said that she hopes you are not a bloody Scot.”

 

Edward pinches the bridge of his nose—the way he has seen his papa do when Uncle Jacob makes him mad—and a sudden resentment for all these stupid rules about hating anyone who’s English bubbles up in him. “Well, my uncle thinks you are a thieving English!” he retorts before he can even stop himself.

 

He looks in horror as Bella’s beautiful brown eyes fill with tears and her lower lip pulls out a little in a pout. She sniffs. “I did not say that I agree with Rosie, Edward!”

 

He reaches out with his hand to wipe the tears from her eyes when a much bigger hand grabs his small one in a tight grip. Looking up, he sees his uncle stand beside him with a murderous expression on his face.

 

“Edward Anthony Cullen! What are ye thinking, lad? Making friends with a thieving English lass?” Edward’s step-uncle, Jacob Black, barks out.

 

“Hey!” Bella starts to protest, but Uncle Jacob shoots her down.

 

“Quiet, lass. What in damned hell are ye doing here? Get out and on with yer lot!” he snaps at her, pushing her shoulder lightly.

 

Edward tries to slacken his uncle’s hold on him so that he can get to Bella, but Uncle Jacob only tightens his grip.

 

“Quit wriggling, lad,” his uncle says to him and then starts to pull him toward their home … away from Bella.

 

“Edward!” He hears Bella call his name one last time before his uncle lifts him up on his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and keeps on walking.

 

Through his own tear-stained eyes, the last glimpse Edward catches of his best friend is her flushed, tear-soaked cheeks as she looks on in dejection.

 

****

****

** England, 1120 … 18 Years Old **

 

 

 

“It is useless.”

 

Bella shrugs as her sister, Rosalie, tries to reason with her once more. “Isabella, listen to me. This is madness. He has not seen you in seven years! I am positive he would not remember you. If he does not remember you, then what is the point of making this journey?”

 

Taking a deep breath, Bella starts, “Rose …”

 

But her best friend, Alice, steps in for her at that moment. “Rosalie, stop being so negative! Isabella wants to go and find her long lost friend. It is sweet. Besides, you cannot know for sure that he will not remember her.”

 

Rosalie casts an angry glare at Alice for instigating her already out-of-control little sister and then snaps, “It is a hostile territory, Alice! Goodness! Do you not know that the boy lives among the Scots?”

 

“Enough!” Bella finally grumbles loudly. “Stop talking as if I am not even present here, will you?”

 

She waits for a moment to check whether either of them will dare to start speaking again, but when they remain quiet, she says slowly, “Rosalie, you are probably right. It is highly possible that he has indeed forgotten me.”

 

She stops to take a breath, and when Rosalie opens her mouth, she holds up a hand to silence her before continuing. “But that does not mean that I will abandon my wish to find him. I just want to see him once … _one_ time. The day we were separated, I did not have the chance to say goodbye to him. That is the reason I want to go and see him now.”

 

As soon as she stops talking, Rosalie asks, “But why now? Why did you not go when you were separated?”

 

Bella looks at her sister for a moment before answering. “Rose, we lost Mother to the fever only a handful of weeks after that, and you know how overprotective Father has been of us since then.”

 

“You think he will not notice you sneaking off _now_?” her sister retorts.

 

“Oh, he will,” Bella says with a nod. “But the recent dispute with the neighbor has been on the forefront of his mind for a while now, and I hope to be able to get out of here undetected because of his preoccupation.”

 

Rosalie looks heavenward, as if frustrated with her headstrong sister. “You cannot expect to do that on your own, Isabella.”

 

“Why will she be alone?” Alice exclaims. “I will be with her.”

 

Ever the worrywart, Rosalie cries out, “But then the two of you will be alone!”

 

“Nonsense! I will be with Isabella, and she will be with me,” Alice states as if it should have been obvious to Rosalie.

 

Sighing, Rosalie speaks through gritted teeth. “That is exactly what I said, Alice.”

 

Before two of her confidants could get into a more convoluted conversation, Bella grabs her sister’s hand and says urgently, “Why not come with us, Rose? Then we would not be so alone.”

 

Catching on to Bella’s plan, Alice quickly grabs Rosalie’s other hand and joins in the pleading. “Pretty please, Rose?”

 

Rosalie scowls at the two of them before nodding. “All right. We go and see this Edward Cullen and then come straight back home.”

 

Bella throws her arms around her sister’s neck and embraces her tightly. “Thank you so much, Rosie,” she whispers.

 

The smile in Rosalie’s voice is evident when she pats Bella’s back affectionately. “Anytime, little sister.”

 

****

****

** Thirteen Hours Later **

 

 

 

As Bella, along with her two accomplices, softly start to walk out of her father’s house, a voice stops them. “Rosalie? There you are. We need to talk. The neighbors are getting out of hand.” Their father keeps on talking about the situation with Rosalie while Bella hides behind her sister.

 

Bella holds her breath and waits for him to acknowledge her, but that does not happen. When she carefully opens her eyes, she sees that her sister and her best friend are standing shoulder to shoulder, hiding her behind their backs.

 

She turns her head to see the slightly open doorway on the other side. Taking a deep breath, she slowly steps away from her family, knowing in her heart what she needs to do to get to Edward.

 

 

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

“Are you sure about this, Isabella? That land is hostile to us,” Tanya Denali remarks seriously.

 

Bella looks up at the woman employed to keep the borders guarded against anyone who dares to step into the Scottish Highlands and nods. “I know, Ms. Denali. But I need to do this. I need to see him.”

 

The tremble in her voice must catch Tanya’s notice, because she lays a hand on Bella’s shoulder and asks softly, “You love him, do you not?”

 

Biting her lip, Bella responds, “I don’t know anything about love, Ms. Denali, but I do know that he is the only man I have held in my heart for as long as I can remember.”

 

“That’s love, dear.” Tanya says, and after a moment of silence, she adds, “All right, Isabella, I will let you pass, but on one condition.”

 

Bella asks worriedly, “What condition?”

 

“You must not speak while you are there,” Tanya replies. “Try to understand, child, this is for your safety. If you speak, the Scots will know you are English, and who knows what those brutes will do then? Promise me that you will not speak when you are in Scotland.”

 

Slowly, Bella nods, understanding the older woman’s reasoning. “Very well, Ms. Denali, I will pretend to be mute. In this way, they will think of me as one of their own and will not perceive me as a threat.”

 

Tanya leads Bella toward the border that separates their land from the Highlands and whispers, “Godspeed, Isabella. May you find your heart in that heartless land.”

 

Allowing herself one last look at the distant silhouette of the house she grew up in, Bella steps over the mark that indicates the end of England.

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

Around midday the next day, Bella curses her fate as she crouches behind a boulder. During the previous night, she has travelled as far into Scotland, as she could and when she could hardly feel her feet, she decided to take a nap behind a large boulder she found in the middle of a field. What woke her were the sounds of horse hooves, which she can still hear as she tries to hide herself.

 

As she continues to ask God to help her, the sounds suddenly stop. Letting out a small sigh of relief, Bella cranks open one eye to see if the horsemen are indeed gone. What she sees makes her freeze on the spot.

 

There, standing before her, is a well-built man with hair of a peculiar bronze shade and vibrant green eyes. Those eyes make her heart stop and then restart at double speed.

_Those eyes … they are so similar to Edward’s_ , she thinks to herself, remembering the green eyes of her long-lost friend.

 

Behind the bronze-haired man stands another man with blond hair and green eyes. Although his eyes are not the same shade of green of the first man, his eyes make Bella wonder if all Scottish men have green eyes.

 

“I ask ye again, lass, who are ye?”

 

The question makes her snap out of her reverie, and she looks up to see the bronze-haired man look at her with a frown.

 

“Maybe she is mute, Laird,” a voice calls out from behind her, and that is when Bella realizes that she has been surrounded by men wearing kilts.

 

“If she is mute, then how do we know where she comes from?” the bronze-haired man asks again, his frown deepening this time.

 

The fair-haired man shrugs his shoulders and says, “Maybe she is from the Lowlands? After all, she cannot be English, can she?”

 

“Aye, she cannot,” the first man replies thoughtfully. “If this lass was English, she would be dumb as a post to even set her feet here.”

 

His words incite howls of laughter from his companions, and Bella silently prays to be able to get out of this mess.

 

Maybe God is not happy with her, or maybe He does not appreciate being called upon in this manner. Whichever the reason, Bella soon finds herself being lifted onto the horse of the bronze-haired man.

 

He sets her down in front of him, pulling her back to his chest before kicking the sides of the horse with his thighs. The horse starts to strut across the field, and the man expertly steers their mount toward another hill ahead of them.

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

“Son, you do not even know her.”

 

Edward listens to his father try to reason with him. He waits till his father has finished speaking and then says like the hot-blooded Highlander he is, “Father, I am the laird here, and I think I have the right to make the final decision.”

 

“So does the lass.” The sound of his mother’s voice makes him turn around to face her.

 

In Gaelic, he mutters a curse under his breath and then responds to his mother’s claim. “What do you suppose I should do, Mum?”

 

Esme, his mother, shakes her head at his idiocy and chides him softly. “I did not know we raised you to be such a heartless man, Edward. If you want to marry her, you need to ask the girl for her hand.”

 

Edward feels bewildered as he exclaims, “She cannot speak!”

 

“But _you_ can,” his father says reasonably. “Go and ask for her hand, and if she accepts, I will have Father Clearwater preside over the ceremony.”

 

“If I ask her, will we be married by tonight?” Edward asks his father anxiously.

 

What he wants to know is— _will I be able to take her to bed tonight?_ Ever since he looked into those innocent big brown eyes of hers, he has been mesmerized. The way she walks, the sway of her hips makes him want to grab her and explore all those curves that hide beneath the dress she wears.

 

Usually, he is very respectful of women—never forcing anyone to warm his bed, and despite what the rumors around the clan were, he has not yet bedded seven women in his life.

 

If it was any other woman, he would just invite her to stay the night with him, but this girl … this girl looks too innocent to be corrupted in such ways. Besides, he has a feeling that once this mute girl warms his bed, he will forever want only her.

 

The sound of his father’s chuckle makes him turn his gaze back to his parents. His father, Carlisle, grins at him and claps him on the back. “Very well, boy, _if_ she agrees, she will be your bride by tonight.”

 

He gives his father a curt nod and then starts making his way toward the room where the girl stands, looking like a cornered animal.

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

Bella stares out of the window and admires the vast, green valley before her. The place looks so peaceful that her heart does not want to believe that such a place can hold the brutality of the Scottish people as her father always claims.

 

Suddenly, she feels a presence behind her, and when she turns her head sideways, her eyes get locked on the vibrant green ones of the rude man who had unceremoniously dumped her on his horse before bringing her to this place.

 

He looks nervous as he clears his throat and then asks cautiously, “Do you have a place to stay?”

 

Although his English is heavily accented, his words are clear enough to her. This gives her the first clue that this man is not an uneducated brute.

 

Remembering her promise to pretend to be mute, Bella shakes her head in denial.

 

Her response seems to please him for some reason. He stands tall before her and states in a clear voice, “Then I am keeping you with me.”

 

“ _Maybe he is not that rude_ ,” Bella thinks to herself. “ _At least he is allowing me to stay at his house until I find my friend and can go back to my papa._ ”

 

Bella gives him a grateful smile and nods. In return, he gives her a bright smile, and in that moment, Bella realizes that this is the most handsome man she has ever laid her eyes upon.

 

Her thought makes her blush, and she quickly turns her eyes out of the window, afraid that she might call him handsome out loud in her stupidity.

 

The next few hours, Bella finds herself amidst a flurry of activities. An elderly woman comes out and hugs her before leading her into a room with lots of beautiful dresses and accessories. Bella finds herself being bathed and then adorned in a beautiful blue dress. The elderly woman, who introduces herself as Esme, places a plaid around her.

 

For a moment, Bella wants to ask what this is all for, but the plaid makes her think that maybe there is some kind of festivities going on in the house tonight and that is the reason she is being dressed up.

 

 

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

It is not until she finds herself facing the bronze-haired man with her hand engulfed in his in a firm grasp does Bella realize that something is very, _very_ wrong.

 

An old priest, known as Father Clearwater, stands beside the couple and begins speaking. “In the name of the Father …” When he reaches the part where he needs to add Bella’s name, he looks questioningly at her.

 

Bella feels relieved that because they do not know her name, they will not be able to get her married to the man beside her. However, before she can fully celebrate the benefit of being mute, her intended reaches out with his hand and nudges her chin to make her meet his eyes.

 

He looks at her for a long moment before whispering in a soft voice, “Bella.”

 

“What was that, Laird?” Father Clearwater asks him.

 

In a much louder voice the laird replies, “Since we do not know her name, we will call my bride Bella from now on.”

 

His friends surrounding the two of them let out a cheer, and he smiles widely at them.

 

As she stands there, wondering how on earth he knew her name, she sees a familiar head of blonde hair, followed by a raven-haired head. She holds her breath when she realizes that her sister and Alice have indeed managed to follow her to Scotland and have found her just in time.

 

Bella lets her mind wander from the babbling of the priest and focuses on the blue eyes of her sister peeking just above the windowsill. Then she notices Rosalie raise her head just a little bit and begin to mouth something to her.

 

To Bella, it looks like Rosalie is asking her if she wants them to help her. So she nods vigorously. And then she gets the shock of her life.

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

When the beautiful girl beside him nods, Edward hears his father chuckle and say to him, “Well, what do you know? She does agree. Congratulations, son.”

 

Edward smirks at his father, feeling pleased with himself for being successful to marry the woman he wants by that night, and looks expectantly toward Father Clearwater.

 

As if remembering the part Edward has been anxious for, Father Clearwater announces in his wheezy voice, “Well, kiss your bride, Laird.”

 

Edward looks down at the breathtakingly beautiful girl beside him and gives her hand a squeeze before letting it go. She looks at him with wide eyes, and he cannot help but smile at her as he reaches up with his hand to weave his fingers in her long hair and bring her face close to his.

 

He feels her body stiffen at his touch, and he slowly runs his thumb along her cheekbone to jaw. Her eyes flutter close at the sensation, and he feels her relax in his arms. He leans in, and when their faces are only breaths apart, he whispers to her, “Relax, Bella, I will never hurt you.”

 

Her eyes snap open, and Edward seizes that moment to brush his lips softly against hers. He hears her take a sharp breath, and then before she can do anything else, he kisses her firmly on the mouth before ending the kiss.

 

He sees her look at him in utter confusion, but he knows he had to stop the kiss. Otherwise, he would have had her then and there, the clan elders and his family be damned.

 

 

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

After allowing his family to congratulate him on his wedding, Edward lets his mother pull his bride to his bedchamber—to get her ready for their marital bed.

 

Edward waits in anticipation and casts a leisurely eye at his guests. He notices a beautiful blonde woman laughing with his best friend, Emmett, and a small, raven-haired woman talking to his brother, Jasper.

 

In the back of his mind, he knows that these two women are newcomers to his clan, but the thoughts of making love to the brunette beauty who has just become his wife makes him disregard this thought.

 

The moment Edward sees his mother enter the dining hall of his house with his father, he springs to his feet. “Goodnight, everyone,” he addresses his guests in Gaelic. “I hope you enjoy the food and bless me and my beautiful bride to have a very fulfilling life together.”

 

Then, in the midst of cheers and roars of appreciation from his friends, he makes his way to his bedchamber.

 

After closing the door behind him, Edward looks at the woman sitting on his bed, looking worried and maybe even a little afraid. Putting forth his most charming smile on his face, he saunters toward her.

 

His footsteps must alert her to his presence, because she looks at him like a caged animal from her perch, biting her lip in what looks to be anxiety.

 

“Do not be afraid, wife,” he says to her, in the hopes of getting her to relax. “As I promised before, I will not hurt you.”

 

He sees her look up at him from her feet, and he smiles once again. “I know people call me Laird Cullen,” he continues, thinking she might be intimidated by his title. “But you are my wife. To you, I will be only Edward.”

 

Her mouth drops open at his words, and she looks shocked. Then he sees tears welling up in her eyes as she leaps out of the bed and stands in front of him.

 

With a shaky hand, she raises her hand to put it on his cheek and then she whispers, “Edward? You really are my Edward?” in a perfect English accent.

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

Bella sees something pass in her husband’s eyes the moment the words leave her mouth. He narrows his eyes at her and hisses, “You are English? And you can talk?”

 

His tone makes her flinch as she nods timidly. “Yes, I am sorry I lied. The guardian of the gateway told me that I had to pretend to be mute if I did not want to be killed by the Scottish brutes.”

 

He lets out a sardonic laugh at that. “Scottish brutes, indeed. Then tell me, _wife_ , why did you dare to venture out here even after knowing of us?”

 

The way he sneers the word “wife” at her makes her sniffle. She looks down at her feet and responds contemptuously, “I see that you have been taught well by your Uncle Jacob. You finally hate us as well, Edward?”

 

Edward looks startled as her words register in his mind. In a whisper-soft voice, he asks, “Isabella? Is that you?”

 

A sad smile stretches on her face as Bella says, “I used to be your _Bella_ , Edward. Or have you forgotten that as well?”

 

She sees thousands of emotions cross his face until he seemingly snaps out of his stupor and pulls her to his chest in a bone-crushing hug. “Bella … my Bella …” he keeps saying as he runs his hand along her shoulders as if trying to convince himself that his long-lost friend is indeed in his arms now.

 

Bella mumbles against his neck, “Do you remember me now?”

 

He holds her at arm’s length so that he can gaze into her eyes and gives her a tender smile. “I never forgot you, Bella. You … your face … your eyes have always been in my mind. When I had to put a name on you, your eyes reminded me of my beautiful Bella, and that is why I decided to call you Bella.”

 

Bella lets out a soft giggle. “I came all the way from England to find my friend, and when I do, I find him in my husband.”

 

Edward kisses her forehead and asks, “Do you regret the fact that we are married?”

 

She thinks for a moment, frowning a little as she answers, “No, I don’t. Although, I must say I would have loved to see you ask my papa for my hand and have him walk me down the aisle, and also that we could marry in a church filled with flowers, but you? No, there is not the slightest regret in my mind that I get to call my best friend my husband now.”

 

“Always, love,” he says with an infectious smile as he lowers his head to place a kiss on her lips. This time, when they kiss, Bella does not remain the silent spectator. No, this time, she kisses him back with equal passion, making him groan into her mouth.

 

When she starts to feel light-headed from the lack of breathing, his lips do not leave her body; they simply move to her neck. He stops at her collarbone and touches the laces that hold her slip of a nightgown together. Softly, he asks her, “Can I take this off, love? Can I make love to you? Mark you as my bride?”

 

Bella lets out a moan as his words make her body react in a way she has never experienced before. “Yes, mark me, Edward. Love me,” she replies to him, clutching him to her with all her might.

 

When Edward finally tugs on the laces hard enough to expose her to his eyes, she looks at him from beneath her eyelashes, knowing in the heart of her heart he is the only man she has always meant to give this to.

 

When he touches her in the places where no other has ever touched her, she arches her back, seeking any way to get even closer to him.

 

When he is about to join her in the most intimate way, he stops, making her whimper in anticipation. “Tell me,” he says in a voice that tells her how strained he feels to not simply join her at the moment.

 

“What?”

 

He allows his hand to skim her breast as he brings it up to her lips and runs his fingertips along her kiss-swollen lips. “You did not get to say ‘I do,’ and I really want to hear you say those words.” His request makes her smile because no matter how tall and muscular he has grown up to be, he still is the sweet boy she knew at heart.

 

“I do,” she says with a smile. “I take you as my husband, Edward Cullen, not because you are the most handsome man I have ever seen, or because you are the Laird in this clan, but because I love you.”

 

Her words seem to still him as he looks into her eyes and asks hoarsely, “You love me?”

 

Bella shakes her head at his silliness. “Of course, Edward. I have always loved you. I think I fell in love with you the first day I met you.”

 

Edward smiles shyly back at her and kisses the valley of her breasts. “It has been the same for me too, love,” he says against her skin. “And I promise I will keep making you fall in love with me every day we have as man and wife.”

 

“So … forever, then?” Bella asks hopefully.

 

“Forever,” Edward replies with conviction before pushing his way inside her. Once the initial pain recedes, all Bella can feel is utmost bliss. The way Edward loves her with his body makes her fall even more in love with him.

 

As he slowly and steadily builds up the rhythm, she pushes against him, wishing they could always be like this so that no one could separate them.

 

They both find their ecstasy together, holding on to one another like they need each other to just breathe.

 

Right before slipping into the most peaceful slumber she can ever remember having, Bella hears Edward whisper to her ear, “I love you, Bella Cullen.”

 

And she falls asleep with a smile playing on her lips.

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

The next morning, Edward formally introduces his bride to his family, and Bella manages to coax her sister and best friend to come out of hiding and meet her new family. It does not escape her notice that both of Edward’s brothers, Jasper and Emmett, seem to be quite taken with Alice and Rosalie. In her heart, Bella realizes that this trip has been the best adventure of their lives.

 

About a week after their wedding, Bella finds herself being pulled into her husband’s lap. He playfully nips at her neck before asking her, “Tell me, love, what do you want for Christmas?”

 

She melts into his embrace and snuggles more into him, kissing his jaw. “I have already had the best present my heart could desire. I have the man I have always loved as my husband. What more can I want?”

 

He smiles at her and pinches her sides. “In that case, I will just have to figure out something else for you, my love.”

 

“Surprise me,” she says with a wink.

 

What she does not expect is to see horses ready for them the following day. When asked, Edward tells her that he needs to do this in the right way. Although Bella does not realize his meaning, she mounts the horse, content to simply be in his arms.

 

However, when Edward, along with Emmett and Jasper, stop their mounts in front of their father’s house, Bella and Rosalie share a fearful glance. Among the group, only Alice remains silent about their destination.

 

“Edward?” Bella says questioningly.

 

Her husband tightens his arms around her and shrugs. “I believe I need to give my beautiful bride the wedding she deserves—with flowers and in her father’s presence.”

 

She gasps. “What if he hates you?”

 

He simply smirks at her and winks. “I am hoping for a Christmas miracle.”

 

**~*~*~*A Love Like Magic*~*~*~**

 

 

 

In the end, when Charlie Swan realizes that his daughters are going to go with the Scottish men, whether he likes it or not, he decides to let them do that properly—by giving away their hands in marriage to the men they seem to have lost their hearts to.

 

At the altar, he hears his son-in-law say to his daughter, “See, love? I told you there is going to be a Christmas miracle.”

 

To which, his daughter smiles at her husband. “It is not a miracle. It is magic. Our love is like a magic that managed to banish all the hatred from our families’ minds.”

 

 

**~*~*~*The End*~*~*~**

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: So ... thoughts?
> 
> Hit me with them and leave a review!
> 
> Wish you a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and so on ... and if you don’t celebrate any of the holidays, well, wish you a happy weekend. :*
> 
> Thanks for reading.
> 
> Take care.
> 
> Ann


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